Kitchen appliances for preparing a beverage are well known. However, conventional devices have numerous disadvantages. For example, conventional devices generally use a pressurized system (such as espresso, cartridge brewers, etc.) that employ mechanical air or liquid pumps or an unpressurized/ambient system (e.g., percolators, automatic drip coffeemakers, etc.). It is not known to operate a machine in both pressurized (closed) and ambient (open) conditions during different brew or heating cycles. In addition, known pressurized systems can be loud due to the use of mechanical liquid or air pumps. Mechanical liquid and air pumps are also relatively expensive components that effect manufacturing costs and the complexity and reliability of the appliance. Finally, liquid and air pumps may push water through an infusible material too quickly. The strength of a brewed beverage can be increased by a longer contact time between the fluid to be infused and the infusible material. While a mechanical pump can quickly produce a brewed beverage, the beverage may be relatively weak or less desirable than a “slower” brew system.
It has heretofore not been discovered how to create a kitchen appliance that is capable of preparing beverages under both pressure and ambient conditions during different brew cycles. Further, there is a need for a pressurized brewing system that uses low cost and/or reliable components that does not employ a mechanical liquid or air pump to motivate the fluid that is to be infused. The device of the following disclosure accomplishes the above and other objectives and overcomes at least the above-described disadvantages of conventional kitchen appliances.